Citi may sell retail banking unit in Japan: WSJ

Citigroup is considering the sale of its retail-banking business in Japan, the Wall Street Journal said, citing people familiar with the matter.

Citigroup is considering a possible auction for the sale, the Journal reported.

A sale will leave the bank to focus on its corporate banking, investment banking and trading business in Japan, the report said.

The bank has been scaling down its global operations ever since the financial crisis. It said in December 2012 it was withdrawing from consumer banking in Pakistan, Paraguay, Romania, Turkey and Uruguay.